la's pico-union remains in disarray

By Connor McGlynn Pico-Union is a neighborhood known for its minority population, but residents in the area are stricken with some of the worst poverty of any community that makes up Los Angeles City Council District 1. Pico-Union, neighbored by Koreatown on the north, Downtown to the east and Interstate 10 west on the south, is one of 21 neighborhoods represented by Councilman Gilbert Cedillo and is plagued by low-income, poor education and crime. Of the nearly 45,000 people that were estimated to live within the less than 2-square mile community, more than 85 percent are Latino, while the median percentage in Los Angeles is 34.9 percent, according to the Los Angeles Times. Along with having a significantly higher Latino population than other communities, Pico-Union is unique in several other areas.

Many walls that line Pico-Union find themselves either tagged with graffiti or decorated in murals

The neighborhood’s median household income in 2011 was $27,294 compared to the $46,148 median for the rest of Los Angeles, with 35 percent of the population living below the poverty level, nearly 13 percent more than the rest of the city, according to Urban Mapping. The neighborhood, lined with fast food establishments and graffiti covered walls, has historically been deprived of economic success and industrial boom, as the poverty rate was twice the city average in 1990, according to the United States Census Bureau. With income being a scarce commodity for Pico-Union residents, the necessary pursuit of money causes people to skimp on areas that could assist in reforming the economy. “I couldn’t go to college. You gotta have money for that. Gotta have money to live,” said Jose Goldman, 27, who works at a cell phone stand at the intersection of 20th and Hoover streets. “I needed a job for that type of money.” Even foregoing the opportunity to attend college, finding employment in Pico-Union, and District 1, to earn money has been inconsistent, with about 100,000 jobs lost from 2008 to 2009 and an increase-decrease flow since, according to the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce Employment Development Center. Propelled into the workforce by a lack of income and external reasons, residents of Pico-Union have suffered to receive education.

Less than 10 percent of residents have received a bachelor’s degree, half of the Los Angeles average, and 57 percent have less than a high school education, more than twice the Los Angeles average, according to Urban Mapping.

Less than 7 percent of residents 25 and older have a four-year degree (LATimes.com)

There are nine schools located within Pico-Union, six elementary schools, three of which are public, two high schools, one is public, and a public middle school.“They claim these schools are California certified, but that’s bull,” said Arnold Contreras, 20, who received a high school degree while in the juvenile system and is a native resident of Pico-Union. “If you go somewhere like Santa Monica, there’s no question those public schools are much better.” The California Department of Education ranks schools on a one to 10 scale based on how the grade levels compare to the same grade levels at other schools on a system called the Academic Performance Index. The highest rating received by a Pico-Union public school was a five out of 10 API given to Tenth Street Elementary, and the median score was a four out of 10, according to the California Department of Education. Aside from low-income and a lack of education, Pico-Union is also terrorized by high levels of crime. During the six-month span from March 10 to Sept. 7, 2014, 539 crimes were reported in Pico-Union, 161 of which were considered violent crimes: homicides, rapes, aggravated assaults or robberies, according to the L.A. Times. Over that period of time, Pico-Union averaged more than 21 crimes per week and ranked in the top 14 percent of neighborhoods in Los Angeles City in violent crimes, according to the L.A. Times. Alex Rodrigues, 22, is a security guard at Magnolia Place Family Center that has worked several different security jobs in Pico-Union since April 2012. “I’ve heard things, from shootings down the streets to robberies right here,” Rodriguez said, while monitoring the parking lot outside of the family center. “I always hear police sirens.” As 2015 is an election year for the member representing District 1, only time will tell how, or if, the problems that pester Pico-Union will change. “There’s no type of organization trying to help,” Contreras said. “I just feel like there needs to be a leader to step up for this community.” The images presented in this article are copyrighted and belong to their respective owners. Its use on this website falls under the fair use of US Copyright laws. No infringement is intended.

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